The present invention relates to a circuit arrangement for monitoring the state of memory locations in working memories of computers, i.e., for the automatic location of an unoccupied group of memory locations in a working memory whose group length L has at leat the value L.sub.0, which is required by an interrogating program as well as for the return of a no longer occupied group of memory locations and its linking with subsequent unoccupied memory location groups.
In known computer systems the monitoring of the state of the working memory is based on a linear list which is stored in the working memory itself. The elements of this list substantially include the length L, i.e., number of locations of unoccupied memory location groups, and an indicator A which marks the lowermost address of the respective group. The contents of this list are monitored by subprograms in the operating system in that groups of a predetermined length are transferred to programs or no longer required memory groups are incorporated again in the list of available groups.
A significant drawback of this known process is that respective subprograms not only must search through lists but must perform time-consuming address calculations with each step; furthermore, valuable processor time is consumed during the prologue and epilogue for each subprogram address.